From Seaport to National Park

In America’s early days, the Georgetown waterfront thrived as a port lined with wharves and seagoing vessels, and it later became an industrial site before becoming a National Park. In the 1960s, the waterfront was condemned for an interstate highway that was never built, and planning began to convert it into a park. Progress slowed until 1985, when the District of Columbia transferred the waterfront land to the National Park Service. In the late 1990s, a surge of interest brought a partnership centered on rowing, the Potomac’s signature sport. The Georgetown Waterfront Park Commission, a volunteer organization, rallied local residents, the rowing community, regional leaders, and the National Park Service to help bring the park to fruition. Senator Charles H. Percy, a Georgetown resident who loved the waterfront and supported local high school rowing, chaired the commission and was pivotal in the park’s creation. The commission and its successor, the Friends of Georgetown Waterfront Park, helped redesign plans and raise funds, and with support from the Friends of the District of Columbia, a National Park Service Centennial initiative grant, and the dedication of citizens and public officials, Georgetown Waterfront Park became a National Park for all to enjoy.

Washington, District of Columbia · United States